Concrete insert

ABSTRACT

A concrete insert formed by the telescopic interlocking of first and second substantially U-shaped metal members, said first member including slots and said second member including flanges slidable in said slots to both guide the members into engagement and lock the members against relative transverse or rotational movement. Said first member including a base portion with a connecting means mounted therein and said second member including ear portions together defining a planar mounting base. In one embodiment said first member is formed from a tempered metal while said second member is formed from a relatively weak and less expensive sheet metal.

[111 3,884,008 [451 *May 20, 1975 1 CONCRETE INSERT Herman C. Miller, 2419 John Ave. N.W., Gig Harbor, Wash. 98335 [76] Inventor:

[*1 Notice: The portion of the term of this patent subsequent to Sept. 26, 1989, has been disclaimed.

[22] Filed: Aug. 24, 1973 [21] Appl. No.: 391,351

[52] US. Cl. 52/699; 52/704; 52/708;

220/DIG. 25

[51] Int. Cl E04b 1/41 [58] Field of Search 52/699, 698, 700, 715,

52/704, 708; 248/245, 300; 52/544, 546; 220/34, 4, 4 A, 4 E, DIG. 25; 85/36 [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,166,285 1/1965 Downes 248/245 3,693,312 9/1972 Miller 52/708 Primary Examiner-John E. Murtagh Assistant ExaminerRobert Farber Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Graybeal, Barnard, Uhlir & Hughes [57] ABSTRACT A concrete insert formed by the telescopic interlocking of first and second substantially U-shaped metal members, said first member including slots and said second member including flanges slidable in said slots to both guide the members into engagement and lock the members against relative transverse or rotational movement. Said first member including a base portion with a connecting means mounted therein and said second member including ear portions together defining a planar mounting base. In one embodiment said first member is formed from a tempered metal while said second member is formed from a relatively weak and less expensive sheet metal.

10 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures PA'IENTEUHAYZOISTS FIG 5 CONCRETE INSERT BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention This invention relates in general to building constructions having poured concrete floors, and in particular, to a concrete insert which is adapted to be fastened to the top side of the bottom support form for a concrete floor prior to filling the form with concrete. Even more specifically, this invention relates to a two piece form of concrete insert including cooperating slots and flanges which allow the insert to be easily and quickly assembled and which lock the pieces of the insert together after assembly.

2. Description of the Prior Art A building technique widely employed in the construction of multi-story buildings includes the pouring of concrete floors between each story. The bottom surfaces of these poured concrete floors may themselves define the ceiling of the next lower story or support a so-called false ceiling hanging a distance therebelow. It is desirable in this type of construction to provide anchor points, commonly called concrete inserts, in the bottom surface of the poured concrete floors. These concrete inserts include a connecting means which is adapted to receive and hold downwardly depending false ceiling supports, light fixtures, hangers or other support members.

As has been set forth in my earlier US. Pat. No. 3,693,312, concrete inserts must be mounted, usually by nailing, on the forms for the concrete floors prior to pouring of the concrete, and often prior to final installation of electrical or plumbing fixtures. It is desirable, therefore, that the concrete inserts have a low profile and include a strong means for being fastened to the form to prevent their being overturned or displaced by other workers prior to or during the pouring of the concrete thereover.

US. Pat. No. 3,693,3l2 disclosed a concrete insert solving many of the problems not treated by the prior art, however, the means of interconnecting the U- shaped pieces of that insert through the use of cooperating tabs and slots on the base portions of each of the two pieces thereof was found to have certain draw backs, principally relating to the difficulty of simultaneously aligning the slots and tabs during assembly.

All pertinent prior art known to applicant was cited during the prosecution of the US. Pat. No. 3,693,312 and is of record therein.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a two piece concrete insert which may bequickly assembled at the job location by the person mounting the inserts on the concrete forms. In a preferred form both pieces of the insert are metal, one piece or member including a connecting means of the threaded or pushnut type and formed from a relatively strong tempered steel, whilethe second piece is formed from a relatively weak and inex-' pensive sheet metal or the like. Each of the cooperating members is substantially U-shaped and includes outwardly extending ears mounted on the legs of the member distal from the base portion thereof. The ears of one of said members include slots positioned adjacent the legs of said member while the cooperating member includes flanges mounted on the vertical edges of the legs and adapted to slide within the slots. The cooperating slots and flanges allow the pieces of the concrete insert to be rapidly aligned and telescopically engaged and further act to lock the engaged members against rotational or transverse movement. When nailed to a concrete form, telescopic disconnection is prevented and the cooperating slots and flanges provide an exceptionaliy strong interlocking connection which allows the insert to resist substantially all commonly encountered forces which would tend to dislodge or tip the insert from its mounting position.

It is an object of the present invention, therefore, to provide a concrete insert which may be rapidly assembled.

Another object is to provide a two piece concrete insert having exceptionally strong engagement between the pieces thereof.

One more object is to provide a concrete insert of a form which may be securely mounted to a form prior to the pouring of a concrete floor.

Still another object is to provide a two piece concrete insert wherein one piece is formed of a material which is substantially stronger than the cooperating piece.

Other and additional objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a typical concrete insert made according to the instant invention.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the concrete insert of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a side elevation view of the concrete insert of FIG. 1 shown nailed to a form prior to the pouring of concrete thereover.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line 44 of FIG. 3 after pouring of concrete thereover, removal of the form and mounting a hanger therein.

FIG. 5 is a plan view of one member of the concrete insert prior to its being formed to a substantially U- shape.

FIG. 6 is a plan view of a second member of the concrete insert prior to its being formed to a substantially U-shape.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Referring initially to FIG. 1, a concrete insert 10 made according to the teaching of the present invention is disclosed including a generally rectangular body portion 12 having pairs of opposed ears 14 and 16 extending outwardly therefrom at right angles. Referring additionally to FIG. 2, it will be seen that the concrete insert 10 is formed from two substantially U-shaped members 18 and 20, member 18 including a base portion 22 upstanding side portions 24 and cars 14, while member 20 includes a top portion 26 downwardly depending side portions 28 and outwardly extending ears 16.

Base portion 22 is shown to include an opening 30 disposed centrally therein and adapted to receive and hold pin means depending downwardly from a concrete ceiling'in which the insert is mounted. As shown in FIG. 2, opening 30 includes connecting means comprising threads adapted to receive and hold a threaded pin. It will be understood, however, that other types of suitable connecting means including the so-called push-nut type connectors, may also be used. As is well known in 3 the art, push-nuts are adapted to receive and hold either threaded or unthreaded pins with equal facility, the pin being easily insertable through the nut, but very difficult to retract therefrom.

Ears 14 of member 18 include slots 32 positioned near the base of each ear adjacent the upstanding side portions 24, while member 20 includes pairs of flanges 34 mounted on the vertical edges of each side member 28 and extending inwardly toward the like flange on the opposed side member 28. Slots 32 are of a depth such that the portion of the ear 14 remaining therebetween and connecting the ear to the associated side 24 is substantially equal in length to the distance between the inner edges of the pairs of flanges 34, while the width of slots 32 is substantially equal to the width of flanges 34 such that the flanges may slide easily into the slots. As will be understood, members 18 and 20 may be telescopically joined by positioning the members at right angles to each other and sliding flanges 34 into slots 32 to form the concrete insert 10. The concrete insert formed by the joining of members 18 and is exceptionally strong and well able to resist deformation forces due to the fact that the two members bear against each other along the entire vertical length of the flanges 34 and sides 24 and 28. Flanges 34 are bent around and overlap the sides 24 of member 18 and thus not only contact the vertical side edges of sides 24, but also portions of the planar surfaces of the sides adjacent the edges to provide additional support against deformation forces. Viewed in another way, member 20 defines a generally rectangular chamber open at its bottom and partially open on opposed sides between flanges 34. This chamber is sized to slide down over and surround the U-shaped portion of member 18 with flanges 34 sliding and being guided within slots 32 to form the generally closed rigid rectangular body portion 12. From the above it will be understood that the provision of slots and flanges 32 and 34 on the members l8 and 20 respectively allow the concrete insert 10 to be easily assembled while providing a rectangular core structure 12 able to resist substantially all commonly encountered deformation forces.

Referring now to FIG. 5, member 20 is shown in a preliminary stage of formation after having been stamped from a sheet of metal, but prior to being formed to its finished substantially U-shape. Holes 36 are shown drilled or punched in the distal end portions of member 20 which will form ears 16 after final formation of the member, to receive nails or other fastening means whereby the member is mounted on a concrete form.

Referring now to FIG. 6, member 18 is shown in its preliminary stage after having been stamped from a sheet of metal and prior to being formed to its substantially U-shape. The distal ends of member 18 are shown to include stamped or punched holes 38 which may be used to wire the concrete insert to structural reinforcing steel which will be within the concrete ceiling after pouring if desired. It will be understood that while the ears 38 will themselves normally be sufficient to hold the concrete insert within the ceiling after pouring and removal of the forms, the addition of tie wires to reinforcing steel within the concrete will provide additional retaining force for the concrete insert.

Hole 30 in member 18 may be formed of any size depending upon the cross-sectional size of the hanger pins to be supported by the concrete insert. As mentioned above, it is contemplated that member 18 will be formed from a relatively strong tempered steel or the like, the principal strength criteria being the need for the material surrounding hole 30 to withstand the load forces exerted thereupon by hangers mounted therein without deforming. Member 20, on the other hand, may be formed from a comparatively light metal or plastic material, for the reason that its principal functions relate to the mounting of the insert on the concrete supporting form prior to pouring of concrete thereover and to preventing concrete from flowing within and filling rectangular body portion 12 during pouring, and not to supporting loads after the concrete was hardened. The relatively strong corners of member 20 adjacent the flanges 34 which wrap around the ends of sides 24 and bear thereagainst if deformed results in an insert structure easily capable of resisting deformation after installation even when the materials used to form member 20 are relatively lightweight. The members 18 and 20 reinforce each other along the vertical contact surfaces between the flanges 34 and sides 28 and sides 24 when joined telescopically, to produce a structure substantially stronger than the mere sum of the strengths of the members taken separately.

It will be readily understood that while all members 20 may be formed identically, members 18 may be varied with respect to the size of hole 30 provided thereon, and that when assembling a concrete insert prior to installation any available member 20 may be telescopically joined with an appropriate member 18 having a mounting hole 30 sized for use with the particular hanger to be mounted therein.

For example, electricians or sheet metal workers would commonly employ members 18 having threaded openings 30 of either one-fourth or three-eighths inch in diameter, while plumbers or pipe fitters would employ members 18 having threaded openings 30 of either three-eighths or one-half inch in diameter. All of the above members 18 of varying hole size are usable with any available member 20. The uniformity and interchangeability of members 20 allows a reduced inventory of concrete insert pieces to be maintained at a job site.

Referring now to FIGS. 3 and 4, the installation and use of concrete insert 10 will be discussed. In FIG. 3, insert 10 is shown mounted on a wooden concrete form 40 by means of nails 42 extending through holes 36 in ears 16. The vertical length of side members 24 and 28 may be as little as one-half inch, and thus it will be readily understood that the nailing of insert 10 to a concrete form provides a very stable mount which will not be easily displaced or overturned after it is fastened and positioned on the form. If metal or plastic forms are used in place of wood forms, other suitable fastening means such as conventional pop-rivets may be substituted for nails 42. Once nails 42 are driven to rigidly fasten the member 20 to the concrete form, telescopically joined member 18 is locked therebeneath.

Referring now to FIG. 4, when the concrete floor 44 is poured, the concrete surrounds the concrete insert 10 such that ears 14 act to anchor the insert therein after the concrete hardens.

After the concrete has set and the form 40 has been removed, the ears 16 may be bent downwardly, nails 42 removed, and the ears either bent back into position generally parallel the bottom surface of the concrete. Alternatively, the nail points, or the ears 16 and nails If necessary, the metal members may be treated to prevent rust before installation, and it is understood that a variety of metals and fabrication techniques may be substituted for those described above and still be considered to be within the broad concept of this invention.

The invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or central characteristics thereof. The present embodiments are therefore to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description, and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are therefore to be embraced therein.

What is claimed is:

1. An easily assembled concrete insert formed by the telescopic interlocking of two members comprising:

a first member having a base portion, a pair of sides extending vertically upward therefrom and a pair of ears extending outward from the upper ends of said sides;

said first member including two pair of opposed slots, each pair of slots disposed on a respective one of said pair of ears adjacent said vertical sides, with the slots of each pair extending toward each other along its related vertical side;

a second member having a top portion, a pair of opposed sides extending vertically downward therefrom and a pair of ears extending horizontally outward from the lower ends of said sides;

said second member including two pair of opposed flanges disposed on the vertical edges of each of said sides, with the flanges of each pair extending inward toward each other at a generally right angle to the side on which each flange is disposed;

said first member being sized to telescopically mate with said second member such that said opposed slots slidably receive said flanges, with the flanges engaging the vertical sides of the first member in overlapping relationship, to guide said members into engagement with each other and to lock said members against transverse disengagement forces;

and

said first member including an opening in its base portion including a connecting means.

2. The concrete insert of claim 1 wherein said ears of 3. The concrete insert of claim 1 wherein said base portion of said first member and said top portion of said second member are rectangular in shape and wherein said sides extend outwardly from opposed sides thereof at right angles.

4. The concrete insert of claim 1 wherein said flanges and said slots are positionedon said members such that said pair of ears associated with each member extend transverse each other when said insert is telescopically assembled.

5. The concrete insert of claim 1 wherein said first and second members are formed of like material, said first member being formed of heavier gauge material than said second member and having a greater resistance to deformation.

6. The concrete insert of claim 1 wherein said first and second members are formed of different materials, said first member being heavier and stronger and having a greater resistance to deformation than said second member.

7. The concrete insert of claim 1 wherein said first member is formed from tempered steel and said second member is formed from sheet metal.

8. The concrete insert of claim 1 wherein said first member is formed from metal and said second member is formed from a non-metal substance.

9. The concrete insert of claim 1 wherein said second member is mateable with one of a plurality of first members having base openings and connecting means of differing size.

10. An easily assembled two piece concrete insert comprising:

a first U-shaped member including a base portion and two vertically upwardly extending side portions; said base portion including an opening therein, said opening including a fastening means;

said side portions including ears extending laterally outward from the upper ends thereof, said ears each including a pair of opposed slots adjacent said associated side portion defining a necked down portion at the base of said ears, said slots of each pair extending toward one another along their related vertical side portion;

a second U-shaped member including a top portion, two vertically downwardly extending side portions and a pair of ears extending laterally outward therefrom;

said side portions of said second member each including flanges mounted on their vertical edges at a generally right angle to their related side portion and extending inwardly toward the flanges on the opposed side portion;

said first and second members being telescopically mateable whereby said flanges of said second member slide within said slots of said first member, with the flanges engaging the vertical sides of the first member in overlapping relationship, and

said flanges wrapping around the edges of said side portions of said first member to prevent rotation or lateral movement of said members relative each 

1. An easily assembled concrete insert formed by the telescopic interlocking of two members comprising: a first member having a base portion, a pair of sideS extending vertically upward therefrom and a pair of ears extending outward from the upper ends of said sides; said first member including two pair of opposed slots, each pair of slots disposed on a respective one of said pair of ears adjacent said vertical sides, with the slots of each pair extending toward each other along its related vertical side; a second member having a top portion, a pair of opposed sides extending vertically downward therefrom and a pair of ears extending horizontally outward from the lower ends of said sides; said second member including two pair of opposed flanges disposed on the vertical edges of each of said sides, with the flanges of each pair extending inward toward each other at a generally right angle to the side on which each flange is disposed; said first member being sized to telescopically mate with said second member such that said opposed slots slidably receive said flanges, with the flanges engaging the vertical sides of the first member in overlapping relationship, to guide said members into engagement with each other and to lock said members against transverse disengagement forces; and said first member including an opening in its base portion including a connecting means.
 2. The concrete insert of claim 1 wherein said ears of said second member each include an opening adapted to receive a nail mounting said concrete insert on a form and locking said concrete insert against telescopic disengagement.
 3. The concrete insert of claim 1 wherein said base portion of said first member and said top portion of said second member are rectangular in shape and wherein said sides extend outwardly from opposed sides thereof at right angles.
 4. The concrete insert of claim 1 wherein said flanges and said slots are positioned on said members such that said pair of ears associated with each member extend transverse each other when said insert is telescopically assembled.
 5. The concrete insert of claim 1 wherein said first and second members are formed of like material, said first member being formed of heavier gauge material than said second member and having a greater resistance to deformation.
 6. The concrete insert of claim 1 wherein said first and second members are formed of different materials, said first member being heavier and stronger and having a greater resistance to deformation than said second member.
 7. The concrete insert of claim 1 wherein said first member is formed from tempered steel and said second member is formed from sheet metal.
 8. The concrete insert of claim 1 wherein said first member is formed from metal and said second member is formed from a non-metal substance.
 9. The concrete insert of claim 1 wherein said second member is mateable with one of a plurality of first members having base openings and connecting means of differing size.
 10. An easily assembled two piece concrete insert comprising: a first U-shaped member including a base portion and two vertically upwardly extending side portions; said base portion including an opening therein, said opening including a fastening means; said side portions including ears extending laterally outward from the upper ends thereof, said ears each including a pair of opposed slots adjacent said associated side portion defining a necked down portion at the base of said ears, said slots of each pair extending toward one another along their related vertical side portion; a second U-shaped member including a top portion, two vertically downwardly extending side portions and a pair of ears extending laterally outward therefrom; said side portions of said second member each including flanges mounted on their vertical edges at a generally right angle to their related side portion and extending inwardly toward the flanges on the opposed side portion; said first and second members being telescopically mateable whereby said flanges of said second member slide within said slots of said firsT member, with the flanges engaging the vertical sides of the first member in overlapping relationship, and said flanges wrapping around the edges of said side portions of said first member to prevent rotation or lateral movement of said members relative each other. 